La Piedra is one of 23 estates in Palm Springs' guard-gated Southridge community. The Midcentury Modern retreat, with views of the San Jacinto mountains and Coachella Valley, is made of more than 700 tons of quartz.

About the area: In the first quarter, 104 single-family homes sold in the 02264 ZIP Code at a median price of $342,000, according to DataQuick. That was a 14.5% price decrease from the first quarter of 2012.

To submit a candidate for Home of the Week, send high-resolution color photos on a CD, written permission from the photographer to publish the images and a description of the house to Lauren Beale, Business, Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012. Send questions to homeoftheweek@latimes.com.

Actress Patricia Heaton, who stars in “The Middle,” and her husband, actor David Hunt, have sold their home in Hancock Park for $8 million. The house came on the market at the end of January at $8.295 million and was in escrow in three weeks.

Actor Kelsey Grammer, whose ex-wives are as hard to keep track of as his homes for sale, has parted with one of them, selling his Ralph Flewelling-designed Spanish classic in Beverly Hills for $6.7 million.

The consumer price index, a leading measure of inflation, fell last month into negative territory over a 12-month period for the first time since the fall of 2009, when the nation was just emerging from recession. It also fell from December, the third straight month-to-month decline.